Sally Shows Seashells… at the BNSS

I am currently a member of Bournemouth’s very own Natural History Museum, the Bournemouth Natural Science Society. Each month they run a group called Young Explorer's to engage 7-11 year olds with nature. I was asked to run a session for them all about shells. Great fun ensued.

We began by discussing the term 'Conchology' and how it differs from 'Malacology' before delving in to the world of molluscs. I also gave a rendition of a foghorn blast using my Queen Conch trumpet, rendering our young guests speechless.

Steve from Microscopy helpfully brought along a WW1 artillery shell to demonstrate the many applications of the word 'shell' before running an exciting experiment with fire and acid to show how to find out what material snail shells are made of. 

After an interval involving hearty slices of cake we then had a look at the various shells people had brought with them. I identified many local shells as well as some beautiful Cat's Eye Operculums found by one boy on holiday abroad. Another lady had two beautifully intact bubble shells found locally, a rare treat to find. We also had a live exhibit of two African Land Snails which was wonderful to see. 

For the last half hour we made hanging shell mobiles, did some colouring in and drawing the shells that I had brought in. Some children decided to invent their own shells such as the Gastro-Valve hybrid gastropod bivalve (ingenious!) while others designed their own intricate origami shells. The abundance of creativity in the room was magical to see.

We finished with reciting some limericks by volunteer Jeanette with highly amusing results, before rounding up with a final foghorn blast on the shell trumpet- with an all-round agreement that molluscs are indeed amazing. 

Learn more about the museum here: https://bnss.org.uk/